REGION WRESTLING: Mosley sending 3 to state tournament

LYNN HAVEN — Trailing 4-1 with Fort Walton Beach's Spencer Mackenzie on his back with just over a minute remaining in the third and final period, Mosley junior Robert Wills' window to qualify for his first state tournament bid was starting to close.

Moments later, Wills grabbed hold of Mackenzie's left hand, rolled his way to a reversal into top position, and then pinned the Vikings junior's shoulders to the mat to get the victory.

With that win at Saturday's Region 1-2A wrestling tournament at Mosley High School, Wills advanced to the third-place match and, more importantly, earned a place at the state championship tournament March 5-6 in Kissimmee.

It's not bad for a guy who is just in his second year of wrestling and was fighting through rib and elbow injuries going into the match.

"It means everything to me, everything," Wills said of making it to state. "Just the look on my father's face, feeling that hug, there's nothing like it, man."

Wills only made it to the region tournament thanks to a pair of byes at the district tourney, going 0-2 in his only two matches. Wills didn't even get to wrestle in the state series last year due to a dislocated ankle.

He left the team after his injury but vowed to Mosley coach John Winkler he would be back for his junior season, though Wills said he was met with some degree of skepticism initially.

"I told my coach I'd be back next year. I don't think he believed me, but I showed up," Wills said. "I have a coach that has put a lot of time and effort into me. When I got injured this year I told him I wouldn't quit. He's been doing so much for me."

Winkler said he was especially impressed with the resliency that Wills showed with time running out in his match against Mackenzie.

"A lot of kids would crack under those circumstances," he said. "To keep your head in the game mentally and keep pushing and keep fighting, it's a scenario we put kids in every day in practice. 'Hey, it's 20 seconds left and you're down by one, down by two points, you've got to score.' Robert is really responding well to that scenario and it showed off today."

Wills, who ended up finishing fourth after losing his third-place match to Gabriel Hecht of Orange Park, was one of three Mosley wrestlers to qualify for state along with Nick Hejke at 145 pounds and Nick Kendrick at 152.

Mosley was hoping for several more state qualifiers, but senior Kaydon Lester lost 2-0 to Niceville's Martin Black in the consolation semifinals and brothers Derrick and CJ Williams in the 106/113 divisions were disqualified after being late to weigh-ins after both won their first two matches in Friday's preliminary round.

Hejke, who last year was a region champion at 132 pounds, finished second Saturday at 145 after falling to New Smyrna Beach's Michael Shannon 12-4 in the final. Hejke had won his first three matches of the tournament, including two by fall, and is now 47-8 on the season.

It's the fourth consecutive state tournament appearance for Hejke, who said advancing through regionals is a feeling that never gets old.

"It feels special every time," he said. "I know in my semifinal match I was very pumped when I won. It's a surreal feeling, like you know, I really did something. It's never something to take for granted because nothing is ever guaranteed. It's always a cool experience to be there."

Kendrick had a little more work to do to earn his third trip to state and his first with Mosley after going the last two years at Arnold. After winning his opening match Friday, Kendrick lost in the quarterfinals and had to fight his way to state in the consolation bracket Saturday.

After wins over Avante Chamble of New Smyrna Beach by fall and Ian Daily of Gulf Breeze by 9-5 decision, Kendrick secured his spot at state with a dominant technical fall victory over Trevion Sermons of Orange Park in the consolation semifinals.

Kendrick lost his final match to Christopher Greene of Columbia in the consolation final, but he had already finished the primary mission and hopes that he can end his high school career with his best-ever finish at state.

"I would really like to make the podium this year," he said. "I think I can. I just have to continue doing what I've been doing these past few weeks. But it feels great. I really needed this win and I'm super excited to go back (to state)."

While Kendrick and Hejke are both veterans of the state tournament, each was just as excited to see their less experienced teammate Wills earn his first state bid.

"That was amazing. I was not expecting that," Kendrick said of Wills' clinching victory. "My hopes were a little down when (Mackenzie) got that second takedown. I didn't even see the reversal, but that was amazing. It was really awesome."

Said Hejke: "Robert really stepped up this year and exceeded all expectations. It's very impressive. There are not many second year wrestlers who make it to this point in the season. I'm beyond proud of him and all his accomplishments. Remember that name, Robert Willis. That's a name to look out for in the coming years."

Winkler was hoping to take at least four Mosley wrestlers to the state tournament, though he said coming short of that took no joy away from getting to take three Dolphins to Kissimmee.

"We're really proud of the guys we got and even the ones who didn't qualify for the state tournament wrestled really hard today and I'm really proud of them," he said. "For the seniors (who didn't make it), it's heartbreaking for them. For the other guys, we'll get them back in the practice room, take a couple of weeks off, and start working hard for next season.

"But we've got three guys moving on to the state tournament and they deserve everything they got. They've been working hard all year long and I'm glad it's working out for them. I'm real proud of all of them."

This article originally appeared on The News Herald: REGION WRESTLING: Mosley sending 3 to state tournament